Alright, so I was just thinking about this earlier, and I figured why not enlighten whoever reads these little 'tuts' I make.
Today we're gonna be going over credit card fraud, and how you can easily accidentally be criminalized online by purchasing products from newer merchants or 'too good to be true' prices.
Alright, so let's begin.
Firstly. I want to point out when dealing online, you should never, and I mean never, enter your credit card on an online site that isn't extremely reputable.
'Why? is dirtcheapvapejuice.com gonna steal my credit card?'
No, that isn't why.
The reason why is because newer websites like that commonly store credit card information, and are also vulnerable to having their databases compromised and information stolen. Or, some hackers have been known to inject a script on the merchant website that records all the information submitted and sends it to their server. (Read my Databases FAQ~!)
What newer websites are safe to purchase from?
Great question. I recommend websites such as amazon. But Amazon doesn't sell everything. For other websites, I recommend using websites that have a paypal gateway. Meaning, you can use paypal to make the purchase, and they don't receive your credit card. Or, use bitcoin, the ultimate secure payment method.
You mentioned being criminalized for 'too good to be true' prices?
Yes, this is a complex concept, so put your seat belt on. We're getting deep into how credit card fraud works.
Credit card fraud is growing more complex by the day with skimmers and other things. But no need for all that, today we will just cover how it works online. Commonly (online), credit cards are stolen with banking trojans, or stolen databases. Hundreds can be stolen with ease using these methods.
Alright, so, l33thacker101 stole 300 credit cards. But if he just plugs them into his amazon and buys himself a new xbox one, it'd quickly show he stole the credit cards, and he'd be arrested.
This leaves l33thacker101 with two, and only two options.
1.Sell the credit cards on the deebweb. Unreliable, have to deal with escrow services, that's no fun.
2. This is more like it. Find a way to get money out of the cards and make it look like someone else.
l33thacker101 goes for option 2. So he creates himself a nice little website, 'coffeemakersforpennies.com' And advertises brand new coffee makers for 20 dollars when they normally cost 200, and ridiculous prices such as this.
He uses a stolen credit card to buy some ads, and quickly he gets customers. Someone like yourself, who sees these sick deals on coffee makers and can't resist buying some. Of course, you're a smart puppy, and use the trusty paypal gateway, so you don't get your credit card stolen.
So now l33thacker101 just got 20 bucks from you. Good deal. But now he needs to ship you a new coffee maker, or you'll charge back the payment.
So l33thacker101 heads over to 'reallyexpensivecoffeemakers.com' and uses a stolen credit card to buy that same 200 dollar coffee maker he sold you for 20 bucks. With one catch. He puts the shipping address as your address. So, 2 weeks later, the police knock on your door wondering why you have this coffee maker that was purchased with a stolen credit card.
Either that happens, or this happens: 'reallyexpensivecoffeemakers.com' goes out of business because banks take all the stolen funds back.
Come again?
Krebs On Security made a nice little diagram to explain the concept more easily.
Be very careful with your credit card people, those things being stolen is on the rise.